Another 250 000 jobs by 2020 for Phalaborwa
Minister of Tourism Derek Hanekom paid a visit to Tzaneen and Phalaborwa during his Limpopo Province outreach programme, culminating in an open forum at the Letaba Restcamp in the Kruger National Park (KNP).
This platform gave role players and stake holders the opportunity to engage with the minister about issues pertaining to the tourism industry in our region.
Minister Hanekom said that through research it became apparent that the two main attractions for foreign tourists in South Africa are Table Mountain and the KNP, and that there should be no reason why adjacent communities should not also benefit.
This research study also showed that there is an increasing demand for cultural tourism and that the northern part of Limpopo, with its rich cultural heritage, is ideal to promote this type of tourism.
Currently there are two main focal points on the agenda of the department of tourism, the energy crisis and universal accessibility.
The department is busy with an assessment to launch a programme to subsidize establishments to retrofit solar energy and become more environmentally friendly, thus marketing South Africa as a green zone.
Other points on the agenda of the forum were the opening of a new gate into the KNP, the Shangoni gate at Giyani, this gate is in the approval phase and the project will have a construction term of two years.
The air access to Phalaborwa was also a hot topic, making Phalaborwa more accessible via multiple competitive carriers, and a possibility of state subsidized air access similar to the state ferries to Robben Island from Cape Town.
Minister Hanekom said the aim is to create 250 000 jobs in the tourism industry by 2020 through enhancing facilities for sustainable growth.
He encourages establishments to become graded as “Fair Trade in Tourism” in order to receive aid from the Department of Trade and Industry and other state entities.
